The Delhi High Court on Monday asked the state government to establish Covid-19 testing centers at the capital’s interstate bus terminals within seven days for migrants returning to the city from different states. The court said that since the Center had issued new guidelines under Unlocking 4, more people would come to Delhi and that it was important to control the spread of the virus.
The high court also asked the state government to rethink its policy to screen Covid-19 patients in the national capital to accommodate asymptomatic patients in the wake of the growing number of cases. A bench of Judge Hima Kohli and Judge Subramonium Prasad was listening to a statement presented through attorney Rakesh Malhotra to increase the number of evidence in the city.
“You (the Delhi government) thought you had killed the dragon (Covid-19). However, this dragon has multiple heads, which makes people’s lives miserable. Cases are increasing in the city every day, ”the court said while expressing concern about the growing number of cases in the city.
Expressing dissatisfaction with the number of tests carried out, the court asked Dr Nivedita Gupta of the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) if the strategy regarding the tests in Delhi can be changed. To this, Gupta said that ICMR is only an advisory body and that it will present new guidelines.
She, however, stated that her guidelines do not prevent any state government from issuing its own rules. Citing the example of Punjab, Gupta said that the state government had eliminated the need for a prescription for testing. She said that Maharashtra has also modified its rules (ICMR) according to its own needs.
To this, the court asked the Delhi government about the possibility of opening private laboratories for RT-PCR testing of asymptomatic patients, so much so that it does not affect the current operation of the laboratories.
Dr Nutan Mundeja, DGHS, Delhi Government, told the court that he would change the policy / plan strategy for testing. “We hope that the Delhi government will present a notice for private persons …”, said the bank.
During the hearing, the court received a comparative study of the two Sero Survelliance that has been carried out in the city. The bank noted that the data showed a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases in three districts, southeast, south and west of Delhi, while claiming the result was alarming.
He noted that the report noted that a significant number of the population was asymptomatic, which acted as “silent spreaders” and caused damage to the city. He said there is an urgent need to test those people to slow the spread even further because everything has been opened in the Unlock-4 guidelines issued by the Home Office (MHA) on Saturday.
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